7 Mar. 2007

Australia is still planning to spend between $12-15 billion on the purchase of 80 to 100 Joint Strike Fighters (JSFs), developed in conjuction with out Coalition Of The Shilling allies in the UK and USA. But now we are ALSO going to spend another $6 billion on 24 new Super Hornet fighter jets. And the government is lying about the reasons:

Defence Minister Brendan Nelson says the move is a stop-gap measure due to delays in the development of the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program.

All of the statements made in public by the Government, the RAAF and the JSF manufacturer Lockheed Martin continue to insist that the Joint Strike Fighters will be delivered on time and on budget. Either that is not actually the case and the JSF is having problems, or we have rushed into a backup plan costing almost 50 per cent of the main plan for no compelling reason.

Seems to me that Howard knows he is on the way out and has cut a last minute deal with his Yankee mates, one wonders how big the kickbacks are on a deal of this size.

Johnny and the Jerkoff's unofficial retirement fund.

Sounds about right to me. The post-WWII USA is built on a war economy, and Australia under Howard is being subsumed into that economic and political model. How long before a former Halliburton, Lockheed or Bechtel employee becomes Aussie PM?